


Title in Progress

by MagicMangan



Category: My Candy Love
Genre: Drama & Romance, F/M, Not Canon Compliant, Slow Burn, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-13 23:41:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,409
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29162076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicMangan/pseuds/MagicMangan
Summary: This is just a fun writing experiment/work in progress. I cannot promise it will be completed. Tags will be updated as needed. Ongoing story involving a love triangle between Nathaniel/Candy/Castiel which takes place during the University arc. The story will follow most major MCLU plot points with personal flavor and artistic choices. I do not own any of these characters.Follow Candy on a slow burner romance where old and new flames quarrel for her love. In a time of drama, rumors, and scandal, passions will rise and hearts will break... (IDFK I'm bad at summaries, I'm not even sure what I'm writing yet. Subject to change.)
Relationships: Candy/Castiel (My Candy Love), Candy/Nathaniel (My Candy Love)
Kudos: 5





	1. Old Faces in New Places: Candy

Candy sighed, squinting her eyes shut tighter as she the series of events that occured the night before came rushing back all at once. For a moment she would have sworn she could still feel the beat of the band's drum pounding in her head. Unfortunately a wave of nausea accompanied that beat which could only be explained as a hangover from one to many drinks. After a bit of stumbling and swaying though, Candy made it to the bathroom and her cheek embraced the cool seat of the porcelain toilet after her body strained over the ring for a minute. Last night continued to play through her head: partying with her friends, seeing Castiel and his band, and helping Nathaniel get Amber to safety. Of course, there was what happened when Castiel had seen her at the concert too but that seemed to be coming back to Candy in fragments. 

Pulling her head up, Candy shut the lid and flushed the toilet. After rinsing her mouth and making her way back to the room Candy picked up her phone from the nightstand and looked over the bombardment of texts that covered her screen. 

"Oh come on…" she muttered under her breath, as she placed a hand to her clammy forehead. Most of them were from Rosalya and Alexy asking how she was doing and apologizing for her behavior. A couple of others were from Chani and Priya checking in, but two texts stood out to Candy in particular. 

The first simply stated,  _ "Sorry about last night. Hope you still had a good time.  _ \- Nathaniel

The second left Candy confused:  _ "Did you make it back to campus okay?"  _ \- Unknown

Candy paused, debating on if she should say anything in response to Nat. Everytime they interacted with one another things seemed to get more complicated. She had thought that the two of them going to the concert together would have opened some new doors for them and resparked their friendship, but these days she could never be quite sure with him. One moment he was kind and gentle while the next he would keep her at an arm's distance. 

She tapped on the unknown phone number instead and replied,  _ "Who is this?" _

She took a few more moments to reply to Rosalya and Alexy's texts and then sat the phone back down on the nightstand. She was almost done getting ready when her phone pinged. After setting down an outfit option, Candy looked at her phone and narrowed her eyes at the response.

_ "Who do you think princess?"  _

Candy could already feel the tips of her ears burning at the sight of the nickname. She hadn't been called that since high school, of course it was better than some of his other names he had had for her. Candy took a moment to add the number to her contacts before responding, a low mutter exhaling underneath her breath.

_ "How did you get my number?" -  _ Candy

_ "Rosa. She sent it to me last night."  _ \- Castiel

An exasperated sigh passed her lips.  _ "Of course she did."  _ \- Candy

_ "Are you always this cheerful in the morning?"  _ \- Castiel

The door to her dorm room opened and Candy practically threw her phone across the room in shock before clasping it to her chest frantically. Yeleen looked at her with the look of annoyance and disbelief that so regularly accompanied her when she looked at Candy. 

"Jeez, why do you look like you just got caught doing something you shouldn’t? Took you long enough to get up. I figured you'd be out for the rest day." Yeleen grumbled as she put her things away. Candy did her best to try to bring her heart rate down, the phone dinged but Candy didn't dare look at it right now. Instead she put it down and finished getting ready before meeting up with Rosalya and Alexy.

"So," Yeleen started, interrupting Candy's thoughts once more, "I saw you talking to Castiel, the lead singer from Crowstorm last night. You two seemed… close. How do you know him?"

Right. Candy had forgotten that Yeleen was a fan of his band. "Oh, well we went to high school together." Candy tried to pick up the pace and get out of the room without drawing too much notice. 

"Oh…" Yeleen started, shifting uncomfortably, "So you two were close?"

Candy paused at that as she realized what Yeleen was trying to get out of her. A smile pulled at the corner of her mouth but she did her best to not let it show. "We hung out in the same circles. I dated his best friend for awhile so sure I guess we were kind of close."

"Oh. Cool." Yeleen frowned as she sat down on her bed, a contemplative expression running across her face. Candy took the moment to grab her things and run out the door before Yeleen could decide to be any more interested in her personal life for the day. Candy reached the elevator before pulling her phone out again.

_ "It was good to see you last night. We shouldn't wait for four years before we do it again." - _ Castiel 

Candy scoffed before pressing the down button.  _ "If I remember correctly that wasn't just my fault." - Candy _

_ "Right. Well princess, assuming you're free next time I'm in town I'll shoot you a text and we can catch up."  _ \- Castiel

Candy's cheeks began to burn, she forgot how easily he got under her skin. The elevator doors slid open and Candy quickly made her way through as some people got off. 

_ "That's rather presumptuous of you."  _ \- Candy

_ "Oh, so you're seeing someone?"  _ Another text soon followed.  _ "Rosa mentioned you met up with Nathaniel at the concert last night. Didn't realize that he was your type." _

Candy gave an exasperated sigh, her fingers moving quickly before placing her phone on silent. 

_ "Whatever I am with whomever is none of your business." -  _ Candy

Candy sent a second text to Rosa and Alexy letting them know she was on her way to the shop before putting her phone away. The walk from campus to the shop didn't take Candy long. Before she knew it the three of them were sitting around one of the local cafes and chatting about the night before. After Candy and Castiel had… talked, she had returned to the party to find a very inebriated Rosa. Alexy and Morgan had been kind enough to take over babysitting Rosalya who had been well past her limit. Of course Rosalya had apologized profusely over the whole ordeal but Candy had waved it off.

"Everyone pushes their own limits now and then Rosa. No big deal." Candy glanced around before turning her attention back to Rosalya. "So... why exactly did you give Castiel my number?"

Alexy sputtered into the coffee he was sipping from, dabbing his mouth with a napkin in an attempt to quickly cover up his surprise. "I'm sorry what!?"

"Oh, um..." Rosalya shrugged innocently. "Cassy just told me he wanted to catch up with you. He didn't know you were back in town and your presence surprised him at the concert." 

Candy's brow furrowed as her eyes got lost in the cup of coffee she had barely touched. Castiel and her had lost touch soon after Lysander and her had broken things off. It wasn’t so much that things had ended poorly between them, but rather that every interaction since then had felt awkward and tense. Eventually the two just fell out after Candy moved, becoming too involved in her own problems, and Castiel became too busy with his band.

“Candy?” Alexy’s voice interrupted her thoughts. “Did you hear me?” 

“Oh, no I’m sorry Alexy, I must have gotten lost in my own thoughts.” Candy apologized. 

“I’m sure.” Alexy looked at her with a smirk, “I was just wondering what Castiel wanted to talk to you about exactly.”

Candy shrugged as dismissively as she could manage. “He just wanted to make sure I got home safely.”

“That’s it?” Rosalya interjected, her expression a mix of annoyance and curiosity. “You two disappeared for god knows how long after the concert and the only thing he wanted to talk about is if you made it home okay?”

Candy’s heart started to pound in her chest as Rosa’s words made her contemplate the series of events that had occurred the night right before Rosalya’s drunken outburst. She had been trying to block the whole thing out quite frankly, it was complicated and uncomfortable. Those were emotions that Candy didn’t have time to ponder with a thesis coming up, her strained relationship with Nathaniel, and a million other stressors on her plate. Now though, the floodgates had been opened and what had happened couldn’t just be pushed away... 

She recalled his fingers grasping her wrist and roughly pulling her into the tight hallway so that they would be out of sight of the prying eyes in the Snake Lounge if only for a moment. They were tightly cramped so close together that they were breathing the same air. They had had a short and tense conversation about her return to town and the fact that she was at the concert with Nathaniel. He had had a couple of beers by then and was coming off of the high of his band’s performance. Her cheeks were flushed and her heart was already rapidly beating in her chest which was pinned tightly against his. She could feel all of him against all of her and-

Suddenly Alexy was snapping his fingers in front of Candy’s face who jumped in her seat, startled by the whole event. “I’m sorry.” Candy fumbled to bring herself back to reality. “Look there’s really nothing to say. We talked for only a brief moment. It was awkward and I don’t particularly remember all of the in’s and out’s of the conversation.” Rosalya and Alexy’s eyes searched her face knowingly. “Look,” Candy continued, as she pulled out her purse and paid for her part of the bill. “I need to get back to campus. Chani and I are supposed to hang out and I’d like to rest for a little bit before I have to work at the cafe all day tomorrow. I promise if there is anything worth telling you, I will.” 

Rosayla’s expression became worried, perhaps out of concern that they had pushed her too far before Alexy cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Candy, we weren’t trying to upset you. If you want to talk we’re here and we won’t push to, right Rosalya?” 

Rosa bit her lip for a moment, before giving a small nod as she watched Candy gather her things. There was more that Rosa wanted to say, Candy was sure of that much, probably about the fact that she met up with Nat at the concert, but Candy didn’t have the energy for that conversation right now. “I’ll text you guys later okay?”

Candy’s walk back to campus was a blur, her time with Chani was a blur, and before long Candy found herself walking across campus on her way back to her dorm with nothing left to distract her from her thoughts of Castiel and her in that confining space... 

His hand had never let go of her wrist while the two of them had stood there in that tight hallway staring into one another’s eyes with waves of emotion crashing within them again and again. Rather than release her, he had clutched onto that hand of hers a little too firmly and held it in place between them without any promise of release. Candy’s fingers grazed over his chest ever so lightly and she could feel his body heat radiating against them. 

“Hello princess…” the corner of his lips had pulled up ever so slightly into that half smirk half grin he wore about him when he was thinking of something humorous. There was the smell of beer on his breath mixed with his cologne and cigarettes, a concoction served as an oddly familiar smell that sent her spiraling down memory lane. After his cold interrogation about why she hadn’t told him she was back in town, and her awkward confession that she was at the concert with Nathaniel, there had been a strange atmosphere between the two of them that Candy couldn’t explain. 

The music vibrated the air around them as she stood locked in place like a deer in headlights. Castiel’s eyes became distant again but not in the cold manner he had radiated at the table. They seemed lost in thought then, almost remorsefully. Then the hand that wasn’t wrapped around her wrist slowly moved up to her face. His index finger was rough and calloused from years of guitar practice in comparison to the smooth skin of her jaw. Castiel’s hand started just below her ear and Candy’s eyes fluttered shut as her head automatically tilted towards it without thought or comprehension. Her breath was stuck in her throat as her body moved to obey his. His knuckles grazed her earlobe and the sweet spot on her neck just beneath it. When her eyes opened again, he was slowly caressing the line of her jaw with the knuckle of his index finger as he stared at her with a far away expression that was an abyss of emotions.

He spoke in a voice that was barely audible over the loud music and the sound of laughter in the background. It was a choked noise that seemed to barely escape him, “I’ve missed you...” His eyes slammed shut and his brow furrowed in anger only moments before he released her entirely and walked away. Her body suddenly felt cold in his absence. Her eyes were suddenly blurry, pools that began to overflow without her consent. Her breath hitched and bubbled from her lips as if she had forgotten on how to breathe during their brief transaction. Candy stood there reeling, unable to process what had just transpired between them. The only thing her eyes seemed capable of focusing on as she looked out into the crowd after him was the color red. 


	2. Emotions: Castiel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I changed a lot of the conversational text because I think a lot of the dialogue in MCL can be out of place/awkward/forced.

The sight of Candy in the crowd had certainly thrown Castiel off the other night. He couldn’t help but continuously loop the stupidity of his actions in his head again and again. His thoughts had been such a distraction to him that even his band members had made a few disapproving comments about it. What was he supposed to tell them?  _ “Yeah, sorry guys, I’m just fucking stupid and don’t know how to handle my own fucking emotions apparently.”  _

_ Oh sure that’s just fucking brilliant. _ He thought to himself before realizing his producer was telling him he was missing the mark again. 

Castiel attempted to shake it off but quickly decided it was better to walk the whole thing off. He stopped abruptly and placed his guitar down in the recording room, muttering an apology and making for the door. His foot had barely made it past the threshold of the door when Zackary decided to open his fat mouth and make a comment he should have kept to himself.

“Awe, loverboy just can’t stop thinking about his failed conquest from the other night,” He snickered in a voice that wasn’t quite low enough for Castiel to miss.

Normally Castiel would have brushed it off with a flip of the bird or making some kind of snipe back, but for some reason he just really wasn’t in the mood to deal with Zackary’s shit this morning. Castiel spun around so quickly that his producer who was approaching him to try and talk some sense into him took a few steps back. Before Castiel had had any real time to consider what he was doing, his fists were wrapped up in the collar of Zackary’s leather jacket and his steely grey eyes were meeting Zackary’s green ones. Zackary’s mouth was quirked into a daring smirk that Castiel wanted to beat off his face.

Zackary had spotted Castiel hurriedly moving away from Candy that night, but when Zackary had asked him about it he had merely brushed the comment off saying she was just some girl he knew. Of course he hadn’t wanted to get into the depths of it, especially with someone like Zack. Now the asshole thought he was being funny when he made his jokes about her but the idea of anyone referring to Candy as a  _ conquest _ was so revolting his body had responded to the words without any real forethought. 

“Don’t  _ ever  _ fucking talk about her like that again.” Castiel hissed between his teeth. 

Zackary chuckled and moved his mouth to speak but was interrupted by his girlfriend Leopoldine who placed her hand on top of Castiel’s fist, her fingers tightly grabbing at his as she attempted to pull his hand off of her boyfriend’s jacket. She was glaring at the both of them as she growled, “Enough! Both of you! Take a fucking walk Castiel and watch your damn mouth Zack.” 

Castiel relinquished his grasp and turned away from them, hearing Zackary agreeing with Leo quietly and muttering his apologies as Castiel made his way past Gabin and their producer, he rushed out of the recording studio’s doors and into the bright morning sun which blinded him momentarily as he regathered himself. Castiel’s breathing was coming in rough gasps as he leaned back against the brick wall. He tilted his head back and covered his eyes with his hands as he centered himself.

_ Good job you fucking moron, how are you going to explain away that? _ He thought to himself before straightening himself out and making his way down the line of shops without any real sense of direction or thought for a while. Pulling out his phone he checked the time and thought that he probably just needed to eat. He had been in such a rush to get out this morning that he hadn’t bothered with breakfast. It was a bad habit that alway left him hungry at night but he couldn’t seem to quite kick it. Castiel decided he would get something to eat and then head back to the studio and apologize.

With his phone in his hand a second thought occurred to him and he stopped walking, garnering him a grumbled complaint from the woman behind him as he checked the message notification on his phone. His heart stopped for a minute only for him to be filled with disappointment as he realized it was just another funny dog video that Priya had sent him. “Damn it…” he muttered under his breath before looking at the last message Candy had sent him. 

_ "Whatever I am with whomever is none of your business." -  _ Candy 

He hadn’t had the nerve to text her again after that without making a complete ass of himself, a habit that he knew he was only folding to because he didn’t know to tell her how he was sorry and he really just wanted to see her again. “Fucking idiot…” he sighed. A few strangers on the street looked at him in disbelief and took the opportunity to step off the sidewalk and into the nearest alleyway. His fingers hovered over the phone’s keyboard as he made multiple attempts to send her a message before erasing it. 

_ “Are you free tonight? We should catch up. Dinner is on me.” _

_ “Good morning. You sleep okay?”  _

_ “What are you up too?” _

_ “Hey.” _

He gave up on each text, erasing them quickly before shoving the phone back into his pocket and pinching the bridge of his nose. His eyes slammed shut. It would be easier if he could just talk to her in person. His anxieties always seemed to fade away in her company. 

At that moment the sound of a woman’s laughter caught his ear and nearly knocked the breath out of his lungs. He practically stumbled out of the alleyway at the sound of that laugh, a noise that he hadn’t heard since high school. Making his way down the street and weaving past people passing him by his eyes he followed his ears to where he could see her hair moving in the breeze as she smiled and laughed again in conversation with another person.

Castiel didn’t know how to feel at that moment. His stomach was in knots as he stood there there looking at that expression on her face as she tilted her head ever so slightly. She was wearing some kind of bear apron and hat while clutching onto a tray full of drinks and dishware. Candy nodded towards the stranger who gave her a wave before leaving, and Candy carefully used her foot to prop the door in and head inside of the cafe. 

When she was out of sight he took a moment to look around the area and realized they weren’t far from the snake lounge where he had last seen her. He glanced up at the title of the building “Cozy Bear Cafe” and shook his head.  _ She must work here part-time... _ Castiel thought before taking in a breath of air for bravery and running across the street and up to the door of the corner cafe. A bell chimed as Castiel pushed open the door and made his way inside. The smell of hot coffee and pastries tickled his nose and in response his stomach automatically growled. He could hear the sound of someone moving around in the kitchen but he seemed to be the only customer present at the moment.

It was only a brief moment before Candy came out from the back and jumped in surprise at the sight of him. The apron she was wearing looked a bit disheveled and a wisp of hair was out of place from the attempt she had made to make it look good despite the demeaning ball cap that appeared to be a part of the uniform for the café.

He cleared his throat and attempted to sound casual. “Hey, could I get a coffee?”  _ Real smooth dumbass.  _

She spoke in a squeak of a noise, “Castiel! Hi...” Her face was starting to burn and Castiel could tell he had really caught her off guard.

“Relax, it’s just me.” He said with a smile in an attempt to reassure her. 

“Ha!” A gasp of air past her lips as she appeared to be gathering her own thoughts. “You surprised me is all. I didn’t even hear the bell ring.” She fiddled with her apron as he looked around the building. 

“I didn’t know you worked here,” Castiel chuckled, “Sure is slow. You scare all of the customers away?”

This strangely enough seemed to relax her and Candy rolled her eyes before shaking her head as she spoke, “Oh sure. That must be it. I am known to be a real walking disaster after all.”

“Oh I remember. Some things just never change, huh?” Castiel jest with a grin and Candy automatically gave him a gentle punch in the forearm, a smile beaming across her face. It was almost just like old times. 

“You know if you came here for food you might think about being nice to me. People who are mean to their servers tend to regret it.” She mocked him before folding her arms over her chest.

“Yeah yeah.” Castiel chuckled. “So you know how to make cappuccinos now?”

“Oh yeah, it's been a great skill to add to my resume. Opening all sorts of new doors for me.” Candy responded with a roll of her eyes.

Castiel’s grin faltered as he looked towards the back of the cafe with realization, “So you’re all by yourself?”

“Ah,” Candy gave a weak laugh and adjusted her hat. “Yeah they’ve kind of left me on my own. Clementine is calling it a test run to see if I can handle opening and closing on my own.” 

Castiel frowned and a tinge of concern colored his voice. “Sounds like a hell of a test run…” He cleared his voice and attempted to keep the conversation moving, “Well if the coffee is good I’ll have to leave a good rating on the cafe’s webpage.”

Candy laughed and raised a finger, “Don’t forget to mention the incredible waitress who made you the best coffee in the world!”

“Man that’s a hell of a reputation to live up to. Hope the waitress isn’t trying to pull a fast one on me.” 

“I would never sir.” Candy pouted with false hurt. “One cappuccino coming right up.” Candy turned and momentarily disappeared before getting to work behind the counter. Castiel leaned against the counter quietly watching her form move and for a moment his mind was lost in the haze of the snake lounge again. The startling sound of the coffee grinder working brought his mind back to the present and as he watched Candy work. 

“So did you know I worked here?” Candy asked as her hands moved deftly, packing the ground coffee into the portafilter before snapping it into place on the machine. She pulled out a cup and placed it below the spout right before the overwhelming smell of espresso filled the air. 

“No,” Castiel answered slowly. “I saw you outside and thought it was only right that I should come by and say hello.” Candy nodded in response. While the espresso poured she worked on steaming the milk, a feat that Castiel felt uncomfortable watching as he realized just how hot the metal jug in her hands must be getting. 

Candy was surprisingly focused despite their conversation as she moved about. The temperature didn’t even seem to bother her one bit as she quickly tipped over some cocoa into the espresso cup and finished it off by pouring the hot milk into the mixture. When she placed it in front of him Castiel couldn’t help but smile at the delicate leaf she had made in the middle. 

“Will would you look at that,” he murmured before quietly sipping from the drink. 

It was nice to be in a place that was so quiet. Castiel was excited about the band’s rising popularity and success but it was starting to take more of a toll on him than he had thought it would. While online classes had been a nice option in the beginning, since Candy’s rearrivale to town he had been fighting with some unfamiliar pangs of jealousy towards his friends and the regularity of which they were able to see one another. 

“So, you’re going to Anteros Academy University…? I thought you were gone for good with your parents after high school.” Castiel commented as his hands gripped tightly onto the cappuccino cup between his hands, soaking in the warmth. _ Of course she is dumbass, why would you bring that up right now? Do you really want to do this conversation right here and right now?  _ Castiel thought bitterly.

“Well…” Candy paused uncomfortably, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. “I thought I was too honestly, but Anteros is one of the only places that has the major I want to study for my masters. So I got back in touch with Rosa and one thing just kind of led to another…” Candy trailed off at the end, and for a moment Castiel thought she was having a hard time making eye contact with him. 

A bitter taste rose up in the back of his throat like bile.  _ What did you expect? That she came back because she missed you? _ He had had feelings for her back then in high school too, but she was in love with his best friend and anything he could have done would have caused more pain than good. So, he had learned to live with Candy as a friend. For them he was willing to live with that. He had too many problems he was dealing with in his own life anyways. Castiel had just  _ really  _ moved on from Deborah at that point and his career as a musician was just beginning. So her friendship had been enough, for a while. When everyone started going to college and moving their own way, Lysander had suggested that she move out and stay with him in town so that she could go to school at Anteros, after all Rosa and Leigh wouldn’t have minded. Understandably, Candy wasn't ready for that kind of step in their relationship and the two of them ended things. 

Their relationship soon dissolved after she had moved away and broken things off with Lysander. While the breakup had been mutual, Lysander was still understandably hurt about it. Castiel had hated seeing him that way, and even more so hated the part of himself that was happy it was over between them. He hated the part of himself that longed for more between himself and Candy, and he hated how he had pushed her away after their breakup to avoid acting on those desires.  _ And for what? Lysander and you hardly even speak now. _

Castiel roughly cleared his throat, “So you’re still studying Art History?”

Candy blinked a few times, clearly thrown off by the question. “Well… Yes. I’m really enjoying it.”

“So I see…” Castiel nodded briefly and kept his eyes on the coffee cup again. _What the fuck is that supposed to mean you idiot?_

Candy began cleaning up her supplies from making his drink. As she spoke she was wiping out the metal jug with a white rag. “ So what’s it like being on the road all the time now? Do you miss not being able to see everyone regularly?” 

Castiel looked up from his glass and shrugged nonchalantly. “Well, I don’t see them as often… But you know me, I’m not really the type to get too attached to people.” The truth was of course it bothered him. The resentment had only grown in tenfold since Candy’s return to town. Candy gave him a strange look of skepticism before shrugging as well. Castiel realized it was probably dumb to be so standoffish about the whole thing since she had alway been pretty good at reading those around her, “I still run into the ones who stayed when I am able to attend classes here in person.”

Her expression was surprised. She paused in her work and looked at him quizzically with one raised brow. “I didn’t realize you were attending classes at Anteros. I hadn’t seen you around. What are you majoring in?” 

“Yeah you probably wouldn’t have.” Castiel nodded, “Most of my classes are online with all of the touring going on right now. It’s unlikely that we’ll see one another in person hence why asked Rosa for your new number. Didn’t want you running around campus looking for a ghost after all.” Castiel gave a low chuckle at his joke then and Candy rolled her eyes with a sigh. 

“It was an honest mistake.” She muttered before putting up a few things behind the counter. “Well,” she continued, sounding a bit more confident, “I get it. It’s great the band is successful and you can keep doing what you want, in any case. So is the coffee all you needed or did you want something to eat? I’ve got a lot of pastries. Made fresh this morning.”

Castiel shook his head no, and pulled out his wallet. “How much do I owe you?”

“Three twenty-five.” She replied. 

Castiel handed over the money and then picked up his cup of coffee. “It’s pretty nice outside today so I think I’ll find a seat out there and enjoy the weather. If you’re not too busy I’d be happy to have the company.” His heart stopped momentarily as he realized how casually he’d asked her that. She was at work after all so it was unlikely but he didn’t want to stop talking to her just yet.

Her mouth tightened into a thin line as she thought it over and she appeared to be internally struggling with herself. “Um, sure. Maybe for a bit.” 

Outside Candy and Castiel sat down as he finished his coffee and closed his eyes enjoying the warm rays of sunlight that tickled his face. “The coffee is pretty good actually,” he commented in an attempt to start a conversation. Candy only smiled a closed mouth smile though and gave him an appreciative nod. “So how is Rosa by the way? She seemed pretty tipsy at the Snake Lounge the other night.”

Candy’s face paled momentarily and she uncomfortably slipped her hand behind her neck, playing with the hair at the nape of her neck. “Yeah sorry about that.”

Castiel shrugged in an attempt to reassure and looked away, “It happens. I could have done without some of her comments but shit happens.”

Their conversation tapered off and the two of them simply sat in silence enjoying the good weather. Occasionally Castiel thought he caught Candy watching him but he tried not to give it too much thought. Their little piece of quiet was soon interrupted by Nina and a group of her friends who were giving him a lot of stares and giggles. Candy left him to attend to them and retrieve what sounded to Castiel to be a very large order of drinks and pastries. Castiel watched quietly for a bit as Candy frantically moved about attempting to meet the girls’ needs. It wasn’t long before he found himself following her into the cafe to ask if she needed help.

“Hey, Candy do you need help with all of that?” he questioned as he nodded at the tray full of drinks and goodies.

She hesitated momentarily before finally nodding with a sigh, “I wouldn’t mind a little help.”

Castiel nodded, silently helping her make a few drinks before picking up the tray of drinks and following Candy out to the table where Nina and her friends were sitting. She set her part of the order down before making her way back into the cafe. Castiel quietly gave the rest of the teens their part of the order before following after her. As soon as he stepped into the store he heard Candy yelp loudly in pain from behind the counter. 

Moving quickly towards the sound, Castiel found Candy clutching onto her hand next to a steaming kettle. Her hand was bright red and he could tell she was trying her best to control her outburst. “Are you okay?” He asked as he quickly moved to douse one of the rags under cold water and cover the offended hand with it.

“Yeah I just…” she said gesturing with her free hand at the kettle and sighing in frustration.

“Well it looks like it’s superficial so should heal up fine, and putting the cold water on it will help with the pain.” He sat there quietly for a moment, holding her hand between his and the rag as she softly thanked him. 

“I’ll go take the rest of this out to them.” Castiel nodded at the tray she had, grateful for the opportunity to escape. 

Candy followed him soon after and walked in on the scene of Nina ripping a phone out of the hands of a boy who had been an idiot and thought he looked tough for taking a picture of Castiel giving them the last part of their order. The whole thing warranted an eye roll from Castiel and soon the group of teenagers began to disperse after the tense chastising Nina had given the young boy, leaving their drinks behind them on the table. Candy was visibly upset by their actions but she controlled her response well enough. Castiel offered to help out and pay for some of the coffee before he could think anything of it but a familiar voice interrupted their conversation.

“Well I never expected to see the local star hanging around this part of the neighborhood.” Castiel’s eyes narrowed as he looked up from the table he was wiping down at the owner of the voice. Nathaniel was smirking at him when Candy walked up and stood alongside Castiel. “I was hoping to grab a coffee but I guess I should look elsewhere.” 

“I wasn’t aware this was a hot spot for delinquents.” Castiel muttered under his breath as he squared off against Nathaniel. The two of them had never gotten along well and now the reminder that Candy had been with Nathaniel at the concert came back to him with unbelievable force. 

Nathaniel sucked in air sharply between his teeth and soon the two of them were eye to eye, an intense tension radiating off of the both of them. Candy stepped up in that moment before the encounter could escalate any further and put her hands up towards both of them, not quite touching either one of them but enough in the way that she would be collateral damage if either of them decided to throw the first punch. 

“Enough,” she hissed in irritation. “This is seriously not the place for this.” Candy’s eyes were flickering around as onlookers stopped to watch and see what events may unfold. 

Castiel was the first to step back. It took Nathaniel a moment longer before he shoved his hands in his jacket pockets with a sense of finality. He hesitated for only a moment to look down at Candy. He bit his lip as though he had had more to say before turning around and making his way down the street and away from them.

“Didn’t expect to see him out in the light of day.” Castiel grumbled, rolling his eyes before turning to meet Candy. She was watching after Nathaniel. Something about that sent a dart of jealousy striking through his heart. “I would advise you to seek better company than him.” 

Candy’s lips parted to speak but all that passed her lips was a sigh. She looked back to him after a moment and Castiel gave her a small smile. “Here.” He pulled out a large bill and handed it to her. “For the coffee and the conversation.” Then Castiel took his leave from her and made his way back to the recording studio where he was bound to have to explain himself. Castiel only looked back once as he was leaving her and he couldn’t help but wish that her eyes had lingered on him instead.


End file.
